Tuesday, December 01, 1981

Berlin, die Sinfonie der Grossstadt / Berliini: suurkaupungin sinfonia. DE 1927. D: Walther Ruttmann. Filmklubben / Filmhuset. Without the Edmund Meisel music. Fine.Smultronstället. tv. [5] Revisiting after six years. Weaknesses: the fourth generation; the past too idyllic.Die Büchse der Pandora / Pandoran lipas. DE 1929. D: G.W. Pabst. Wedekind. Louise Brooks, Fritz Kortner. Fkl / Filmstaden. A 150 min presentation [at 16 fps?]. Amazingly contemporary. Louise Brooks has not dated. Weakness: the storyline.Some Like It Hot. International Youth Center, 16mm. [3]. An apt coincidence to see this on the same evening after Pandora. I saw it for the first time, previously I had only looked at it.Nick's Movie / Salama veden yllä. SE/DE 1980. D: Wim Wenders [& Nicholas Ray]. Fkl / Fh. Wenders' macabre deathwatch of Ray. Hated it. When Wim's team plans to blow itself up in a Chinese junk, it sound like the suggestion most worthy of support in the entire film. Three good sequences: 1) Nick presents The Lusty Men to a young audience, 2) a small group watches We Can't Go Home Again, 3) Ray directs Kafka's A Report to the Academy.Här har du ditt liv. tv [2] Feels diluted in comparison with the recollection of ten years ago. I did not see all of the beginning.Ladri di biciclette / Polkupyörävaras. IT 1948. D: Vittorio De Sica. Fkl / Fst. Worthy of its reputation. Exemplary, admirable in its clarity and wealth. A feeling of a voyage of discovery. Psychologically sensitive. Cf. The Kid by Chaplin.The Cocoanuts. Fkl / Fh [3] A bad print from Malmö.While the City Sleeps / Huulipunamurhaaja. US 1955. D: Fritz Lang. tv. A mordant look on sensational journalism. Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Ida Lupino, James Craig ("pix editor"), Thomas Mitchell (the Irish drunkard), Sally Forrest (DA's fiancée as the bait for the killer). Top of them all: Vincent Price as the corrupt son of the media magnate. The killer (John Barrymore, Jr.) not convincing. The tv screen does not pay justice to L's visual force. L's architecture suffers on the small screen.Terhi's videos. Many of the same ones as seen in earlier in November and December, plus: David Bowie: Life On Mars? (*). Police: Invisible Sun (*). Ultravox: live footage. Ultravox: Thin Wall (*). The Rolling Stones: Waiting On A Friend (*). Simple Minds: Love Song (*). Duran Duran: Girls On Film. Bow Wow Wow: Chihuahua (?). Pearl Harbor And The Explosions: Drivin' (?) (with Wilko Johnson) (*). Tom Tom Club: Genius Of Love (*). Ry Cooder: Hollywood. The Pretenders live. etc. For the third time: video. Almost overwhelming. The history of the cinema is being plundered, and a lot of new things are being discovered. There is an affinity with the original joy of Méliès.Die Little Richard Story. DE 1980. D: William Klein. tv. Quite a good biopic. The biographical side is better than in the other similar ones (Elvis, Janis, Hendrix), but the weakness is that the musical performances are not intact.Kalle Anka och hans vänner önskar god jul / Samu Sirkan joulusirkus. tv [2]. Seems to be a Swedish Christmas tradition. The living toys of Santa Claus. Clown of the Jungle (a funny bird dancing the gopak disturbs Donald's photography efforts). Cinderella (the birds and the mice sow the dress). Ferdinand the fight-hating bull. Lady and the Tramp: bella notte. The Jungle Book: Baloo teaches Mowgli to box. The Fox and the Hound (Micke och Molle): their friendship. Snow White: the dwarfs jamming. Robin Hood: robbing the tax catch. Chip and Dale in the henhouse. When You Wish Upon A Star. Hosted by Jiminy Cricket, piano by Mickey Mouse. - When Disney turns really sentimental, its awful (those calculatingly, quasi-shyly blinking eyes), as an anarchist he's at his best.Sommarnattens leende / Kesäyön hymyilyä. SE 1955. D: Ingmar Bergman. tv. I don't quite get the reputation of this, too calculating. B. balance 36/40.Assault on Precinct 13 / Hyökkäys poliisiasemalle. US 1976. D: John Carpenter. Laconic, crystallized action cinema. Reminds me more of Siegel than Hawks.Mutter Krausens Fahrt ins Glück. DE 1929. D: Piel Jutzi. Fkl / Fh. A 150 min presentation, a decent quality of image. Story by Zille, Kollwitz participated. An obvious model for Kuhle Wampe. Realism, a sense of humour, sensuality, finally nihilism, suicide as the "journey to happiness". The thoroughness of the prose style could have been condensed. Kuhle Wampe's taut style may be a reaction to this. Anyway, a treat.Milka / Milka. FI 1980. D: Rauni Mollberg. Timo K. Mukka. Bostock. The fine feeling for nature helps one stand the terrible drawbacks of the picture. The grouse's courtship. The seasons. The birchwoods. The haymaking. The forestry. The performers of Milka's mother and the Christ-Devil are good. The theatrical, quasi-artistic recitation destroys a lot. Awkward use of close-ups. M. seems to have a big problem with sexuality. A terrible dichotomy of the good/beautiful vs. the bad/ugly.Häxan. SE 1921. D: Benjamin Christensen. Fkl / Fst. 100 min presentation, a fine, toned print. Amazingly contemporary, with a sense of humour. Might Foucault have seen this, or Resnais (Mon oncle d'Amérique)?Häxan [2]That's Entertainment. tv [2] great

Thursday, October 01, 1981

In West Berlin...Feast of Friends. US 1970. D: Paul Ferrara. The Doors. Alhambra. Quite good. +Jimi Plays Berkeley. US 1971. D: Peter Pilafian. ED: Baird Bryant. Alhambra. Quite good. +Phantom of the Rue Morgue / Der Würger von Paris. US 1954. D: Roy Del Ruth. DF. Alhambra. A nice triple bill: The Doors and Hendrix at their best and a solid midnight horror movie, which I found on the basis of the recommendation of Frank Arnold (in Zitty?). A strange surprise: Buñuel must have seen this, since there are references to it in Ensayo de un crimen and Viridiana.Rear Window / Takaikkuna. US 1954. D: Alfred Hitchcock. Thalia 2, 16mm. In West Berlin it was possible to see this Peter Vollmann print before the film was re-released after a very long break. The H. masterpiece beside Vertigo....In Stockholm...For Your Eyes Only / Erittäin salainen. GB 1981. D: John Glen. Ian Fleming. Roger Moore (James Bond), Carole Bouquet. Ri-Tvåan. The worst Bond movie in the series started by Saltzman and Broccoli.The Planet of the Apes / Apinoiden planeetta. US 1967. D: Franklin J. Schaffner. Pierre Boulle. Charlton Heston. tv. "In this universe there must be something bigger than man". Time warp, strange planet inhabited by a small population of apes, and finally in the desert H. bumps into the arm of the Statue of Liberty.Terhi's videos: the super concert in Germany. A Rockpile program directed by Peter Carr (Albert Lee plays with Dave Edmunds). Mink De Ville boring.Raiders of the Lost Ark / Kadonneen aarteen metsästäjät. US 1981. D: Steven Spielberg. Filmstaden. Not impressed.The Kid from Spain / Härkätaistelija. US 1932. D: Leo McCarey. Eddie Cantor. Busby Berkeley tv. Good and bad moments.La ultima cena / The Last Supper. CU 1976. D: Tomas Gutierrez Alea. Filmklubben / Filmstaden. Too much Buñuel imitation at first, but breaks loose later.Los sobrevivientes / The Survivors. CU 1978. D: Tomas Gutierrez Alea. Fkl / Fst. Dedicated to Buñuel, but becomes terribly bad.Punkmordet. SE 1981. PC: Slussenfilm. In the repertory of Erkki Astala. Glimpses from underground Stockholm.The Creature from the Black Lagoon / Mustan laguunin hirviö. US 1954. D: Jack Arnold. Filmstaden, 3D (red / green glasses). There are moments of poetry, starting from the introduction. 3D can be fun when the fish swims towards us or when the harpoon rushes towards the camera.

Wednesday, July 01, 1981

The Trials of Alger Hiss / Alger Hissin oikeudenkäynnit. US 1979. D: John Lowenthal. doc. Fst / Sommarfestival. In the league of de Antonio, Hiss's lawyer uses the freshly opened CIA and FBI files to prove that Hiss, accused of spying for the USSR and convicted of perjury in 1951, was innocent. The Soviet archives that were opened later also had no evidence of Hiss having been a spy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alger_HissThe Day the Earth Stood Still. tv [2]The Horse Soldiers / Ratsuväen urhot. US 1959. D: John Ford. tv. His only Civil War movie, anti-war. Wayne is a railway builder who has to destroy his own work. Holden is a medical officer. Constance Towers is a Southern woman.The Producers / Kevät koittaa Hitlerille. US 1968. D: Mel Brooks. Fst. Too tired, I fell asleep.La Spirale. FR 1976. D: Armand Mattelart, Jacqueline Meppiel, Valérie Mayoux, Chris Marker, Silvio Tendler, Pierre Flament. tv. On Chile, familiar images, comprehensive. New: the analysis of media.Ök ketten / Heitä on kaksi / Marie och Julie / The Two of Them. HU 1977. D: Márta Mészárós. Fst / Sf. Psychological sensitivity, a lack of urgency.Radio On. Fst / Sf. [2] Gets better.Renaldo and Clara. US 1978. D: Bob Dylan. tv. Too scattered but strangely compelling four-hour movie. When I Paint My Masterpiece. Isis. A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall. It Ain't Me Babe. Knockin' On Heaven's Door. Hurricane. Romance In Durango. One Too Many Mornings. She Belongs To Me. It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry. The House Of The Rising Sun. One More Cup Of Coffee. Sara. Catfish. Suzanne. Sad-Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands. Tangled Up In Blue (*). Just Like A Woman. In The Morning Of My Life. Ballad In Plain D. Kaw-Liga. Eight Miles High. Makes one appreciate Pennebaker more.Wise Blood / Levoton veri. US 1979. D: John Huston. Flannery O'Connor. Fst / Sf. He's still got the talent for taut film-making, but I don't like the nihilism.55 Days in Peking / 55 päivää Pekingissä. US 1963. D: Nicholas Ray. tv. I don't wonder if the director woke up screaming. The only bright things: Ava Gardner and the self-evident Charlton Heston.Bez znieczulenia / Ilman puudutusta / Without Anesthesia. PL 1978. D: Andrzej Wajda. Starring Zbigniew Zapasiewicz, the official cynic in Polish films. Fst / Sf. Equally good as The Man of Marble, more limited but better in dramatic construction. The film was surprisingly different from what I had read. This is the portrait of an opportunist. Previously he has been supported by all, now by none.National Lampoon's Animal House / Delta-jengi. US 1978. D: John Landis. Göta Lejon. Farce galore.THX 1138 / THX 1138. US 1971. D: George Lucas. tv. Incredibly boring.

Friday, May 01, 1981

Christiane F - wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo / Christiane F - isku suoraan suoneen. DE 1981. D: Ulrich Edel. Marmorhaus, West Berlin. BoringDesperado City. DE 1981. D: Vadim Glowna. Filmkunst 66, West Berlin. Boring.
...
Back to StockholmBus Stop. tv [4]. Seems to work well on tv, feels quicker, pan-scan does not harm.The Man I Killed / Särkynyt sävel. US 1932. D: Ernst Lubitsch. Fkl / Fh. A strange L. film. The man who becomes the double of the one he killed. In the phenomenology of the cinema this belongs to the chapter on Conscience.Trouble in Paradise. US 1932. D: Ernst Lubitsch. Fkl / Fh. Might this not be quite as brilliant as they say, or maybe I was not in the best mood for this. Dazzling but too thin.Design for Living / Meidän herrojen kesken. US 1933. D: Ernst Lubitsch. A fascinating precursor of Jules et Jim. The two friends who love the same woman, yet stay friends. Also this felt too thin.Caprice / Caprice - vaarallinen oikku. US 1967. D: Frank Tashlin. Doris Day. Fkl / Fst. A boring agent parody. Poor Tashlin.The Merry Widow / Iloinen leski. US 1934. D: Ernst Lubitsch. Fkl / Fh. Marvellous, maybe the best L. film, one of the highlights of the year besides The Wedding March and Vertigo. *Peeping Tom. GB 1960. D: Michael Powell. The film as a mortal dream.La Danse de mort / Kuolemantanssi. FR 1948. D: Marcel Cravenne. Strindberg. Erich von Stroheim, Denise Vernac. The prison island as a symbol of the world. The breath that can be seen in the freezing air.Angel / Yön enkeli. US 1937. D: Ernst Lubitsch. A L. favourite of mine. The profound darkness beneath the froth.Secret Agent / Salainen asiamies. GB 1936. D: Alfred Hitchcock. Fkl / Fst. A light suspense film switches abruptly into tragedy as Gielgud and Lorre assassinate the wrong man. Robert Young one of the memorable H. villains. Important clarification of essential moral grounds.
TV: Jerry Williams: Rockrullen. Chuck Berry: Memphis, Tennessee. Jerry Lee Lewis: Great Balls Of Fire. Ruth Brown: Tears Keep Tumbling Down. Fats Domino: Honey Chile [...Hold That Kiss...]. The Moonglows: Over And Over Again. The Coasters: What Is The Secret Of Your Success (*). Johnny Burnette: Lonesome Train. Carl Perkins: Glad All Over. Elvis: Blue Suede Shoes.Ninotchka / Ninotchka. US 1939. D: Ernst Lubitsch. Greta Garbo. Fkl / Fh. Perfect.Rude Boy / Rude Boy. GB 1980. D: Jack Hazan & David Mingay. The Clash. Filmstaden.The Shop Around the Corner / Pieni myymälä. US 1940. D: Ernst Lubitsch. Fkl / Fh. L. does not convince me in the land of romance.Nashville / Nashville. US 1975. D: Robert Altman. Fkl / Fh. Great, loose yet full of intensity, Nashville as a microcosm.To Be Or Not To Be. Fkl / Fh [2] A print dubbed in German. - One of my five L. favourites. Incredibly brilliantly constructed. The characters keep changing their roles, yet keep going in their varying strategies. The ham actors are more credible playing Gestapo than Gestapo itself, because they are afraid to unmask the big fraud. The trick by which they finally outwit Gestapo is the greatest ever. - For the first time I understood this film.Fadren. SE 1911. D: Anna Hoffman-Uddgren. Strindberg. Fkl / Fst. Just a record of a theatrical performance.Fadern / Isä. SE 1969. D: Alf Sjöberg. Strindberg. Fkl / Fst. Somehow it had it all, but an urgent spirit was missing.Herr Puntila och hans dräng Matti. tv. [2] Unlike Sjöberg, Långbacka hasn't it all, but Pöysti's magnificent outburst makes one forget about it. Something wild and wonderful.Roman Holiday / Loma Roomassa. US 1953. D: William Wyler. Audrey Hepburn. Brilliant but a little empty.The Wolf Man. US 1941. D: George Waggner. Lon Chaney, Jr. Fkl / Fst. Good actors, good art direction. It is not us vs. them. The dividing line goes through the monster, he is both himself and something else.The Conversation / Keskustelu. US 1974. D: Francis Ford Coppola. tvMeet Me In St. Louis / Tyttö ja kosija. US 1944. D: Vincente Minnelli. Fkl / Fh.Let's Make Love. tv [2]The Day the Earth Stood Still / Uhkavaatimus Maalle. US 1951. D: Robert Wise. Fkl / Fst. If we don't stop playing with nuclear power they must unfortunately destroy us.Lili Marleen / Lili Marleen. DE 1981. D: R.W. Fassbinder. CinemaBeat the Devil / Afrikan aarre. GB/US/IT 1953. D: John Huston. Fkl / Fst. A wonderful ensemble. I have to agree with PvB: "slackerhood perceived as Weltanschauung". Men of action who don't act.TV: Jerry Williams: Rockrullen. Chuck Berry's bus in Let The Good Times Roll. Chuck Berry: Little Queenie (*). Richie Valens: Ooh My Head (Alan Freed). Buddy Holly: Peggy Sue (tv 1957). Buddy Holly: Oh Boy (tv 1958). Lewis Lymon & The Teen Chords: Your Life's Chance (*). Elvis: Heartbreak Hotel. Elvis: Hound Dog (1956). Chuck Berry & Bo Diddley: Johnny B. Goode (Let The Good Times Roll).Live and Let Die. Kvartersbion. [2] Recycling other cultures. The soul discotheques of Harlem, the voodoo cult of Haiti, Bayou country. This was the big collapse in the continuum of the Bond movies.The Hunchback of Notre Dame / Notre Damen kellonsoittaja. US 1939. D: William Dieterle. Fkl / Fst. Charles Laughton is great.

* The Merry Widow (Ernst Lubitsch) - the funniest telegram in film history.
Bits from the telegram to the Marshovian Ambassador in Paris Popoff (Edward Everett Horton)."Darling" = "You are the greatest idiot in the diplomatic service". "Next word: Lilac Time" (having heard this Horton asks to remove the poison bottle)."She must be married now. Act quickly. Be brilliant. Meet crisis. Kill rumors. Admit nothing. Deny everything. Evade issues. Face facts. Stand pat. Something must be done. Do it. Do it now. What are you waiting for?""Darling!"

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About Me

Antti Alanen (born 1955) is Film Programmer at National Audiovisual Institute (Finland), which runs the Cinema Orion in Helsinki. This diary is an irregular notebook and scrapbook of rough notes on films and related matters.

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